Volume One: The Turmoil of Yan and Yun Chapter Ninety-Four: Yanbei Yanbei (Part One)
Yama was inherently rejected by heaven and earth. After successive baptisms of the Dust of the World, he ultimately faded into nothingness. When Soul Without Form was stripped from Yama's body, he collapsed to the ground, his face deathly pale, unconscious.
Yama had not been without the thought of resisting; his long blade unleashed slashes that reached the sky. Yet, under the defense of the Mountain and River Board, the Pearl of Rise and Fall, and the Pen of Boundary, his efforts achieved nothing.
As sacred relics worshipped since the founding of the Palace of Jishi, they exhibited powers befitting their status.
Such was the battle between beings at the Path-Union realm: strength was strength, weakness was weakness, and rarely did miracles occur. So-called cross-realm killings only happened when the disparity was not obvious.
Li Jinxing reached out to check Soul Without Form’s pulse, his brow gradually furrowing, then began to administer acupuncture.
The side effects of the World of Yama were greater than he had anticipated. Of course, since it could summon, even briefly, power comparable to Tongtian, any side effects were worth enduring.
“The Evil Clan has emerged already; that’s not good news,” Dou Xiaotong did not interfere with Li Jinxing’s treatment, but asked, “It seems there may be something unusual in Xu Hai. Should we go take a look?”
“Xu Hai is the main base of Azure Garment Tower; why bother with it?” Li Jinxing replied indifferently, “If anything unexpected happens, Blood Without Words will take care of it himself.”
Dou Xiaotong said, “What if they reach some kind of agreement?”
Hearing this, Li Jinxing couldn’t help but laugh, explaining, “The Evil Clan would never consider cooperating with us, and such an alliance offers them no benefit.”
Dou Xiaotong paused, then asked, “Why?”
Li Jinxing replied, “You’ll understand once you reach Cloud Tomb.”
Dou Xiaotong pondered a moment, pressing, “Can’t you explain it?”
Li Jinxing sighed, “I’m afraid you wouldn’t believe me.”
“You can try telling me,” Dou Xiaotong said.
Li Jinxing thought for a moment, then sighed again, “It’s too troublesome. Anyway, you’ll eventually go to Cloud Tomb yourself and see for yourself.”
Dou Xiaotong scrutinized Li Jinxing, realizing he truly didn’t wish to discuss the matter further, and abandoned his pursuit, instead asking, “What about now? Where are you headed?”
Cloud Tomb was a matter for later, but the Battle of Yanbei was imminent.
Li Jinxing countered, “What about you? Where do you want to go?”
Dou Xiaotong replied, “I was going to Yanyun, but since you’re here, I naturally can’t leave.”
Li Jinxing laughed ruefully, “With the situation as it is, I’ve done nothing, so why do you think sticking with me is a good idea?”
Dou Xiaotong frowned, retorting, “Up to now?”
Li Jinxing confirmed, “Up to now.”
Having done nothing up to now implied he would start acting soon.
“What about Li Shouli?” Dou Xiaotong asked, “He’s not with you?”
Li Jinxing smiled, “Where he is... surely you can guess?”
Dou Xiaotong paused, then asked, “Yanyun?”
Li Jinxing shrugged noncommittally, “Guess.”
Dou Xiaotong squinted, “You’re not worried this will affect the overall situation?”
Li Jinxing responded, “Not worried.”
Despite the fact that, by now, two Path-Union realm beings had fallen among the humans, it supposedly wouldn’t affect the big picture?
Dou Xiaotong thought it over and said, “It seems you’ve reached some sort of agreement with the Demon Clan.”
Li Jinxing said, “The ninth prince of the Demon Clan possesses both talent and temperament. Having been a prince for so many years, it’s inevitable he has ambitions for the throne.”
Dou Xiaotong remarked, “The Demon Lord has long possessed power equal to Tongtian; how dare the prince harbor ulterior motives?”
Li Jinxing nodded, “Hence Mahamu will act as well.”
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Dou Xiaotong sighed, “To quietly and efficiently maneuver the Elder Council’s head—perhaps I’ve underestimated you.”
Li Jinxing shook his head with a smile, “He wouldn’t listen to me. If I stood before him, he’d likely skin me alive and drink my blood.”
If the Demon Clan hated anyone most, Li Jinxing was undoubtedly that person.
Hatred often stems from fear.
Li Jinxing was the Demon Clan’s greatest fear.
“It was merely delivering a few words,” Li Jinxing laughed softly. “The Elder Council’s head already doubted the Demon Lord. Taking action was inevitable.”
Dou Xiaotong found it hard to believe.
Whatever motive the Elder Council’s head had, it must rest on a fundamental precondition: the odds of success.
Without a chance of success, no motive could drive him to his death.
Why would he believe he had a chance against the Demon Lord?
Was it foolishness... or confidence?
“It’s a bit too coincidental,” Dou Xiaotong said. “And you’re so certain the Demon Lord won’t intervene—could it be something has happened to him?”
Li Jinxing replied, “Snowcloud Sect has Sword Pavilion, the Southern Sea Demon Clan has the Undersea Dragon Palace, and the Demon Clan, being the strongest race in this realm...”
Dou Xiaotong interrupted, “The Palace of Eternal Night?”
Li Jinxing nodded, “Since you know, I need not explain further.”
“One last question,” Dou Xiaotong asked seriously, “What exactly do you want from Yanbei?”
The situation in Bohai thus far, though Wuyang seemed on the verge of collapse, as long as Blood Without Words and Li Jinxing were absent, nothing would go awry. Yanbei, however, was beset from four directions, with the combined armies fielding five Path-Union realm beings. This could only mean one thing:
The true focus was Yanbei.
“The destruction of Shuntian City was unexpected for me as well,” Li Jinxing sighed. “I interrogated generations of the Feng family heirs, yet never discovered that the current Yanbei King and his second son possessed such resolve.”
Dou Xiaotong said, “Between two evils, choose the lesser. They wouldn’t be ignorant of that principle.”
Li Jinxing replied, “But this doesn’t fit Feng Muyun’s temperament.”
“A rabbit will bite when cornered,” Dou Xiaotong said earnestly. “He’s a renowned general; he wouldn’t sit idly by.”
Li Jinxing laughed softly, “True. But that fellow invested so much effort in the Ten Directions Array, hoping to make Yanbei an impregnable fortress by leveraging the city’s indestructibility... The idea was sound, and last time when the Demon Clan marched south, it proved useful, but not absolutely so.”
Useful, meaning the united array helped in the war against demons.
Not absolutely useful, meaning it didn’t fully meet Li Jinxing’s expectations.
Dou Xiaotong said, “So the destruction of Shuntian City was part of your plan.”
Li Jinxing admitted, “Since it didn’t meet expectations, keeping it was pointless.”
Dou Xiaotong asked, “Can you guarantee your plan will succeed?”
Li Jinxing nodded, “Yes.”
Dou Xiaotong didn’t understand, “Without practice, how can you be so sure?”
Li Jinxing smiled, “Naturally. What I envision is an array capable of locking the entire world.”
...
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“Your Highness! The Thousand Mile Camp has fallen. The Barbarian Alliance is less than a hundred miles from the north gate!”
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“Your Highness! The Strange Stone Forest has fallen. Wang Ke is less than a hundred miles from the east gate!”
“Your Highness! Divine Might Fortress has fallen. Cult disciples have reached the west gate!”
Upon hearing the final report, Feng Muyun finally looked up, shifting his gaze from the tactical sand table. “Divine Might Fortress has fallen?”
The Lord of Divine Might Fortress stood behind him, studying the map, showing no reaction.
Perhaps out of fear, the messenger who delivered the news was drenched in sweat, trembling as he replied, “Yes.”
Feng Muyun fell silent.
The Lord of Divine Might Fortress spoke gently, “Muyun, don’t be sad. If they died defending Yanbei, their deaths were meaningful.”
In the past, for the sake of the Yanbei King’s dignity, the Lord rarely addressed him so intimately.
Feng Muyun said, “I know they would lay down their lives for Yanbei without hesitation. Still, hearing such news so suddenly is painful.”
The Lord replied, “If you feel this way, it’s better to think about how to make their sacrifice more valuable.”
Feng Muyun said, “Now that the Divine Wind Guard has arrived at Yanyun, at least on the battlefield at Yanyun’s north gate, they can contend with the Barbarian Duke.”
The Lord asked, “There’s a shadow between your brows. Are you worried about something?”
Feng Muyun replied, “Something feels off. News of the Divine Wind Guard’s arrival couldn’t be concealed from the Bohai rebels; they know the situation in Yanyun. There’s no way it could fall quickly, so why do they dare penetrate so deep?”
With this, the Lord also sensed something amiss. “Could it be they believe they can conquer Yanyun in a short time?”
Feng Muyun said, “Not possible, but certain. The current Barbarian Duke is cautious. Not just Yanyun—even after the old emperor ascended, he never tried to take Wind Command Pass.”
Cautious, but also helpless.
Two thousand miles of grassland with only one Path-Union realm being; his strategic value was too great to leave the protection of the palace array.
The Lord remarked, “So risk and reward aren’t the issue. He seeks stability.”
Feng Muyun said, “I don’t know where his confidence comes from. With the characteristics of the Sandstorm Array, even with four Path-Union realm beings, they can’t break into Yanyun... Unless, the enemy has five?”
The Lord shook his head, “The Barbarians and Prairie Demons together have three Path-Union beings. That count is accurate.”
Feng Muyun suddenly looked at Momin, asking, “What about Xu Hai?”
Momin replied, “According to news from the Pavilion of Leisure, four of the five Azure Garment Tower Halls have appeared, only the Hall of Wild Lust’s master remains unaccounted for.”
Feng Muyun asked, “Any news of the Hall of Wild Lust’s master? Did you inquire?”
Before Momin could answer, the Lord interrupted, “No need to consider him.”
Feng Muyun glanced at the Lord, surprised, “Lost his mind?”
The Lord replied, “If he hadn’t, then how…”
He stopped, as if sensing something, “In any case... just disregard him.”
Since the Lord vouched so firmly, Feng Muyun did not press further. They were all tied together; one’s loss was everyone’s loss.
“In that case, we can only respond to all changes with constancy,” Feng Muyun sighed. “Let’s hope the storm won’t come too fiercely.”
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